The lack of adapted commercial seed sources for restoration of coastal
prairies and longleaf pine savannahs has caused limited success in
Louisiana. The Louisiana Native Plant Initiative was established to
collect, preserve, increase, and study native plants in the state.
Seeds and plants of native species developed by the partnership will
be released to commercial growers for production and eventual sale
to the public. Currently, LNPI is comprised of 22 federal, state, and
non‐governmental organization partners. Over the past six years, evaluation and production locations including the USDA-NRCS Plant Materials Centers at Galliano, LA (GMPMC) and Nacogdoches, TX
(ETPMC), Nicholls State University Farm at Thibodaux, LA, McNeese
State University Farm at Lake Charles, LA, and University of Louisiana
at Lafayette-Center for Ecology and Environmental Technology (CEET) have been established to select and increase seeds and plants
of Louisiana ecotypes. The GMPMC is evaluating 25 collections of
switchgrass (Panicum virgatum) from coastal areas with the hope
of finding a selection with quick germination. At ETPMC, seed increase
fields of rough coneflower (Rudbeckia grandiflora), ashy sunflower
(Helianthus mollis), and little bluestem (Schizachyrium scoparium)
have been established and are being managed for seed production.
At the Nicholls State University Farm, upland collections of big
bluestem (Andropogon gerardii), indiangrass (Sorghastrum nutans),
switchgrass (Panicum virgatum), rough coneflower (Rudbeckia grandiflora), ashy sunflower (Helianthus mollis), and eastern
gamagrass (Tripsacum dactyloides) are being evaluated. At McNeese
State University Farm, production and harvest protocols are being
developed for rattlesnake master (Eryngium yuccifolium), wooly rose‐mallow (Hibiscus lasiocarpus), and Texas coneflower (Rudbeckia
texana). McNeese is also screening various herbicides for use on
native seed production fields. At CEET, initial collection evaluations
and seed increase of rattlesnake master (Eryngium yuccifolium), lance
leaf blanketflower (Gaillardia aestivallis), gulf coast muhly (Muhlenbergia capillaris), shiny goldenrod (Oligoneuron nitidum), Kansas blazing Star (Liatris pycnostachya), and longspike tridens
(Tridens strictus) are ongoing and a new seed processing facility
is being built to assist with seed cleaning of harvested materials
from all sites. In the fall of 2010, the LNPI plans to release its
first group of Louisiana ecotypic selections to commercial growers.